Squad Vacation
by typhoon-x
Summary: After being in the Black Bulls for a month, Asta brings up the idea of going on a vacation with his squad in order to bond more with his new squad. Though as the group's vacation goes on, some unexpected twists and turns arise.
1. Chapter 1

Asta sweeped the floor of the dining hall, reminiscing about his last month with the Black Bulls. Everything had gone by so quickly. Meeting all the black bulls and becoming part of the group. It was a dream come true! Though there was a long way to go before he could truly call himself a black bull. He had to prove himself to the rest of the squad, and initiation wasn't enough to do that. Asta hit his head while attempting to think of something.

"Come on brain! Help me out here!" Asta complained quietly to himself. Then the idea hit him. He knew the perfect way.

"A group trip! Come on, isn't it a great idea?" Asta exclaimed, staring at all the Black Bulls who were gathered around the table.

"A group trip? With this guy?" Magna clenched his teeth while pointing his thumb over his shoulder at Luck.

"Aww Magna are you scared?" Luck poked at the fire mage.

"Scared? Are you kidding me?!" Magna's voice grew higher as the sentence went on. The two continued to bicker as Vanessa started screaming.

"I LOVE TRIPS! Where are we going?! Will there be drinks?" She loudly proclaimed while slurring her words. Her pink hair was frizzy from passing out on the couch the night earlier and by the looks of it she seems to have been drinking since she woke up.

Charmy sprinted towards Asta and grabbed him by the face, "Food! Will there be any delicious food?!" Charmy squealed and started drooling just from the thought.

"Uhh, yeah there will be. The thing is we just have to figure out where we'd want to go. I just thought bringing up the idea was a good start." Asta scratched the back of his head and laughed nervously.

Finral walked up to Charmy and Asta, interrupting their conversation. "Lucky for you guys I know the perfect place for a getaway. Every girl I've brought there has loved it! It's a cabin I used to visit when I was a kid, though my family stopped going so I'm sure it'll be empty."

"This is perfect!" Asta cheered as he had finally gotten a place figured out for the squad trip.

"What's with all the ruckus down here?" A deep voice boomed throughout the hideout and a 6 foot shadow stepped into the main area. The 6 foot man walked in with his white undershirt on, clinging tightly to his six pack and built chest. He sported a pair of brown pants and black boots that stopped right below his knees.

"Captain Yami sir! I was thinking it would be a nice idea for the squad to take a group trip together!" Asta stuttered along with his words. Seeing the captain in front of him always made him nervous, possibly because he stood almost a foot taller than himself. Asta had always admired the magic knights, especially the captains, because they were the strongest of them all. Though there was something different about Yami that Asta felt drawn to, he couldn't quite put his finger on it, but it was there.

"A group trip, huh?" The words snapped Asta from his thoughts. "I think that's a great idea!" Yami's chuckle echoed loudly throughout the hideout. "I'm ready to go right now!"

"Right now?!" Asta suddenly felt scattered from the fast turn of events. "Don't you need to pack?!"

"I've got everything I need right here." Yami patted his grimoire and katana at his side. "Finral! I expect you'll be using your magic to get us there?"

"Of course!" Finral fixed his posture and pulled out his grimoire, opening a portal for the squad. Asta sighed at the dimensional magic Finral had just used. No more time to waste. The squad trip begins now!


	2. Chapter 2

The Black Bulls stepped out onto long green grass blowing in the breeze. Asta stared from the grassy wasteland at the lake and cabin that lay just about 20 feet ahead of them.

"What is this place?!" Asta looked wide eyed at his surroundings. There was so much to take in but such little time. The lake had a nice beach with a volleyball net set up as well as some canoes for anyone wanting to venture out onto the water. There were sets of rolling hills running all around the lake, making for a great hiking trail. Asta couldn't stop thinking about how great the weather was here, just perfect for swimming. There were so many things to do here! "AAAAAAH" Asta yelled "I'm getting pumped!"

"Quiet down!" Yami smacked Asta on the head "We just got here and you're already being too loud."

"Here we are!" Finral exclaimed as he closed the portal off. "Make sure you don't let anyone know you're here okay guys? If my family finds out I let you come here then it won't be good."

"Don't worry Finral! Your secret is safe with us." Asta reassured him as he rubbed the new bump on his head.

"What are we doing standing around out here? Let's check it out!" Magna encouraged the squad, as he was clearly getting impatient standing outside. Everyone walked up the steps to the cabin and opened the door to what looked like a mansion.

"What is this?!" Asta and Vanessa asked at the same time, surprised by the size of the place.

"Well.." Finral nervously chuckled "I am originally from a noble family so…" He drifted off as he spoke.

"Haha you really outdid yourself this time!" Yami belted out a laugh as he pat Finral on the back.

"Haha… ow." Finral mumbled. "Before everyone starts exploring I want to give out the room assignments! This place may be big, but not big enough for everyone to have their own room." They all gathered around waiting for Finral to update them on where they were sleeping.

"Charmy and Vanessa, you two are together. Luck and Magna. Gauche and Gordon. Grey and Yami. Asta and Yours truly. Lastly, Noelle will have her own room, unless you'd rather try and squeeze in with Charmy and Vanessa?"

"Are you kidding?! As royalty, I should have my own room." Noelle turned away and crossed her arms.

"Great! Then everyone's happy with their room assignments." Finral smiled. He seemed happy with how he placed everyone. Asta was a little sad that he wasn't rooming with Yami, but he couldn't exactly put his finger on why. He couldn't exactly ask Finral to switch, that would be rude considering Finral is the entire reason they have somewhere to be right now. Asta decided not to sulk on it any longer and went to go put his bags away in his room.

After unpacking everything, Asta bolted out of the hallway to get started with his vacation but noticed Grey walking into the room down the hall from theirs.

'So that must be Grey and Yami's room huh?' Asta thought to himself. The only two rooms in this hallway, for that matter, on this side of the house, and it only had the four of them. Asta shook his head to get the thought out of his head. It's time to focus on relaxing and spending time with his squad mates!


	3. Chapter 3

Asta sprinted outside and felt the warm breeze hit his face, looking around he saw a couple of his squadmates down at the beach.

"Hey guys!" Asta screamed as he ran towards the two mages.

"Asta! You're here just in time to see my new trick!" Magna grinned at his fellow Black Bull.

"He's been practicing all day yet he still can't hit me!" Luck taunted the fire mage.

"Oh yeah? How about we change that?" Magna lit a fireball in his hand. Luck started laughing and began to run around the beach. Magna was having a tough time tracking Luck's movements because of his incredible speed, due to his lightning magic. Magna was as much focused on showing off his new technique anymore, but hitting luck with any move he could. Luck began using trees just outside where the beach began to propel himself through the air faster.

"Here goes nothing!" Magna grunted as he threw his fireball, aiming to hit luck as he jumped between two of the trees. Unfortunately the fireball just missed the lightning mage and the fireball flew straight towards one of the beachgoers. "Uh oh" Magna looked nervously at the cloud of smoke that erupted from the impact.

"Which one of you knuckleheads is responsible for this?" Yami frowned, walking out from the cloud of smoke. Asta couldn't see a single scratch on him even though he took a direct hit. He couldn't help but notice the captain was only wearing a loincloth, and no matter how much he tried, his eyes weren't moving away.

"Ah! Captain Yami!" Magna carefully backed away. Magna backed up into Asta, causing both of them to fall over while Yami angrily walked over towards them. Asta looked up a Yami towering over them, almost able to see under his loincloth.

'Just a little more' Asta hoped, about to see the best view of his life. But before his dream was able to come true, he was grabbed by the muscular man and put back on his feet.

"Make sure you two don't do something like that again. Some people could get hurt with a move like that" Yami gave them a scolding rather than beating them up, which was surprising.

"Yes sir!" Magna and Asta saluted.

"A move like that? Are you suure?" Luck continued taunting Magna, though he had stopped jumping between trees upon Yami's approach.

"Luck stop being a weirdo!" Yami reprimanded the blonde boy.

"Awwww" Luck whined but in his usually cheerful voice.

"How about we go for a swim?" Yami recommended. "It'd be a shame to waste this perfect weather." The Black Bulls came to an agreement and all went back inside to quickly change into their swimwear. Asta made sure to inform the others about their swimming session on his way in and out of the cabin. He managed to change pretty quickly so he was the first one outside with Yami, who was already in his swim gear from the beginning. "Wow, who'd knew you'd been hiding such muscles underneath those clothes of yours?" Yami complimented Asta, inspecting his body while he walked towards the beach.

"Ahaha thanks Captain Yami.." Asta's words trailed off as he blushed.

"Can't help but say it's impressive." Yami smiled at Asta. Before he could say anything back he heard the rest of the squad running up to the beach with exclaims about how excited they were. "Well. Let's get to it!" Yami patted Asta's back with a little too much force as usual.

'Yami seemed different than his normal and rugged self. What's going on?' Asta thought to himself right as the rest of his squad mates arrived.


	4. Chapter 4

Asta spent a relaxing day on the beach with his squadmates playing volleyball, doing swimming contests, and all other kinds of activities. The sun soon began to set, and the warm air slowly turned into a cold breeze.

"It's too cold out here! I'd rather be inside talking to Marie!" Gauche complained, packing up his beach stuff

"As much fun as I'm having with all my best friends, he's right. It's getting a bit too cold to stay outside." Gordon whispered just loud enough for everyone to hear.

"Alright everyone! Let's head inside for the night!' Yami directed everyone while pointing to the cabin. Everyone grabbed their towels and Asta ran up to Noelle as they walked towards the warm indoors.

"So what do you think about this vacation so far? Pretty cool right?" Asta gave her a thumbs up.

"Well Dorksta, i'll admit it's been pretty fun hanging out with you all." Noelle smiled a bit and looked over at Asta. "B-but don't get confused! You're a commoner and im royalty! What am I doing in a rundown place like this cabin?!" Asta stared at Noelle as she started backtracking her thoughts. She didn't notice Asta wasn't by her side anymore and ended up walking into the cabin by herself, continuing her solo conversation.

"Sounds like someone's having girl problems." Captain Yami approached Asta from behind.

"Captain Yami!" Asta jumped a little, not expecting the captain to be right behind him. "Well no.. it's not like that.." Asta began to explain

"Hey! I'm not judging you!" Yami belted out a laugh, somehow keeping the lit cigarette from falling out of his mouth. "But i'm not exactly jealous of your situation either. Not a great place to be shortstack." Yami rubbed his hand on Asta's head, but softer than usual. Almost in an affectionate way. "Come on, they're waiting for us inside." Yami gestured Asta towards the cabin door. The two walked inside to see a couple of their comrades gathered around in the kitchen, which was located next to the back door. The two thought about joining them, but since it was Summer, the sun setting meant it was about time for all of them to go to bed.

"Come on guys! Stop in for a drink!" Vanessa swayed a bottle in an attempt to get the two into the kitchen.

"Maybe later this trip Vanessa." Yami spoke for the two of them, pushing Asta faster past the kitchen. Once they were past the kitchen Yami leaned closer to Asta's ear and whispered, "You don't want to get sucked in there. You won't get out until the sun's up." He could smell the smell of smoke radiating off of Yami, as well as his warm breath against his neck and ear. It sent chills down his spine. Not to mention Yami's strong hands pressed against Asta's back. Speaking of which, they were past the kitchen now and Yami wasn't pushing him anymore, yet he still had his hand on Asta's back. He thought about asking but didn't want to make the situation awkward, plus he liked the feeling of Yami's touch. Sadly he got to his room much sooner than he would've liked. "See ya tomorrow." Yami slowly removed his hand when he approached Asta's door.

"Oh uh.. Thank you Captain Yami." Asta saluted again and entered his bedroom. He quickly shut the door behind him and put his hands on his face. "Thank you?! UGH why did I thank him?!" He berated himself.

"Woah what's going on here?" Finral looked at Asta, a bit worried by how weird he was acting.

"Ah! Finral!" Asta gasped. He had totally forgotten he was sharing a room with someone. How was he gonna get out of this? "Oh it's nothing important." Asta headed towards the bathroom, brushing his teeth.

"Are you sure?" Finral pressed a little harder on the topic. Asta pretended like he was explaining himself while he was brushing his teeth, knowing Finral couldn't understand a word he was saying. "I-I can't really unders-... nevermind" He ended up giving up on the conversation and walking away. Asta finished getting ready for bed and smiled to himself. What a great first day and there were still so many more to come!

Asta and Finral woke up early in the morning to a loud banging on their door. From looking out the window, Asta could see the sun hadn't risen yet meaning it was _early_ morning.

"Who's knocking on our door this early in the morning?" Finral complained, rubbing his eyes. He climbed out of bed and sluggishly made his way over to the door and opened it, revealing the Black Bulls captain with only black pajama pants on.

"You better have a good explanation" Yami glared down at Finral.


	5. Chapter 5

Finral looked up at the towering figure standing at the door, demanding an answer

"Wh-what do you mean?" Finral asked, his voice noticeably shaking. The size difference between the two mages stood out more than ever as Yami stood, looming over Finral. Asta turned the lamp next to his bed on as he figured this conversation was something important.

"You put me with Grey!" Yami grunted through gritting teeth. "Do you know how much that guy snores?!" Yami's face began to grow more wrinkled as he frowned more and more. The captain was moments away from punching a wall, or maybe even Finral.

"I-I ummm" Finral began stuttering. He wasn't sure what to say. He couldn't even think with the menacing man standing in front of him, and Asta couldn't blame him. "We can figure something out!"

"Oh you bet your sorry ass we'll figure something out!" Yami began to push his way into Finral and Asta's room. He looked around the room, almost like he was sizing it up, before commenting in a more calm voice. "This is bigger than my room."

"Well yeah, I figured since it was my family's cabin that I should have the master room." Finral attempted to explain his thought process but it was no use.

"Yeah well, i'm the squad captain so I think I'll be using this room from now on." Yami put his sword down so it was propped up against the wall.

"Wait what?! Captain Yami I-" Finral began to protest.

"You what?" Yami turned around and shot him a glare.

Finral sighed, knowing he had been defeated. "Nothing..". Asta felt bad for the spacial mage, but he knew he had no say in what was going on. Finral began walking out of the room and then realized he had no idea where he was going. "So where am I supposed to go now?" He scratched the top of his head.

"Now you get to sleep with that snoring maniac." The captain instructed Finral with what seemed like no empathy or sympathy. "It won't be that bad. You can just warp your ears into somewhere quiet if it gets bad enough." Yami began swatting his hand at Finral, signaling him to leave.

"Whatever." Finral sighed to himself. "I'll figure something out." He said, out of view as his voice got quieter and quieter.

"So… you're gonna be in here from now on?" Asta mumbled still half-asleep. He didn't plan on getting up after this strange encounter either.

"You betcha!" Yami laughed as he walked into the bathroom. "This place is huge! I can't believe you and Finral had this room all to yourselves!" Yami paced around his new room, looking at the walk in closets and other accessories that came with the room. Only when Yami turned around did he really realize what he was missing out on. "TWO KING BEDS?" Yami yelled, loudly enough to wake up everyone in the cabin.

"Captain Yami please keep your voice down!" Asta pleaded. Asta was too tired before to really realize how nice their room really was, and the fact that they had these giant beds, they were bigger than any bed he had ever seen before! "Wow, to be a noble.." Asta laid down on the bed, staring at the ceiling. It felt as if he was finally realizing how different their lives were up in the common realm. Yami sat on the end of his bed, facing Asta.

"I have a fun activity that the squad might like tomorrow." Yami suggested as he kicked back onto his new bed. "I ain't spilling anything about it so don't even ask, but I think everyone will have fun with it… except Gauche." Yami added on after a moment of silence. That was a fair assumption considering Gauche didn't really enjoy anything except his sister Marie.

"Well Captain Yami, i'm sure it'll be great! I'm really looking forward to it!" Asta enthusiastically supported the idea, even if he had no idea what it was. This made Yami laugh, seeing his young subordinates blind faith in his ideas.

"Better get some rest pipsqueak, we got a big day tomorrow" Yami winked at Asta.

"Oh- ahh- goodnight Captain Yami!" Asta reached for the lamp to turn the light off, mostly to conceal how red his face currently was. Did Yami really just wink at him? He didn't have time to stay up and think about it or else he wouldn't be well rested enough for what Yami had in mind for tomorrow. All he could do for now was sleep.


	6. Chapter 6

The sun seeped in through the windows, hitting Asta right in his eyes, forcing them to shut forcibly. He grunted to himself knowing it was time to get up and opened his eyes. He wiped the drool from the corner of his mouth and looked around the room, seeing no sign of Yami.

'I wonder how long ago he got up' Asta rubbed his eyes and jumped out of bed. Either way he shouldn't be holding everyone else up, they had something planned for today. He ran out of the room, throwing his Black Bulls cloak on in the process. It took him a while to navigate through the huge cabin but he managed to find the kitchen where everyone was gathered.

"Good morning everyone!" Asta shouted as he ran into the room. "Who else is ready for our activity today?!"

"Asta.." Vanessa grunted quietly. "Could you please keep it down, I have the worst hangover.." she clutched her head and massaged it a little

"Sorry about that Vanessa." Asta lowered his volume and began rubbing the back of his head. A portal appeared in the kitchen and Finral stepped out with bags under his eyes, indicating he didn't get the best night sleep.

"Oh everyone else is already awake" He attempted to smile, though it wasn't very convincing.

"Asta, as my best friend, tell me what activity you were talking about earlier?" Gordon started inching closer to Asta as he spoke. Suddenly the back door flew open with the esteemed captain standing in the doorframe.

"I hope everyone's ready!" Yami raised his voice above all the others who were talking. Soon enough all the Black Bulls had quieted down and were looking to the captain for more information. "Charmy and I thought of something fun to do together as a squad. I'm sure if it'll be everyone's thing but im thinkin-"

"Hide and seek!" Charmy suddenly cut the captain off.

"Cut me off again and see what happens." Yami glared at Charmy. Yet she was too interested in gauging the other's reactions that she didn't even hear what Yami said.

"Hide and seek huh? Sounds kinda fun!" Magna clenched his fist, clearly up for some competition.

"So do we get to fight them when they find us?" Luck asked while punching the air.

"Stop being a little psycho and just listen for a bit!" Yami interrupted the two. "We're going to put names in a hat and have Vanessa draw one, since she's too hungover to even know what's going on. Whoever's name gets drawn first is it. The countdown to find somewhere to hide is 5 minutes." Asta had never taken Yami as someone to play any games like this. Maybe he was really getting into the squad bonding, the whole reason they went on this vacation in the first place. Yami already had all the pieces together in Vanessa's hat, which she didn't even notice was missing because of her condition. "Pick a paper" he put the hat in front of Vanessa and gave her the instructions. She reluctantly picked up a piece of paper and gave it to Yami. He opened up the piece of paper, read the contents, and sighed. "Well it looks like im it first. So you all better start hiding right now!" Yami raised his voice, signaling the beginning of their activity. Everyone began scrambling to get out the door and scanned the scenery to find somewhere to hide. Asta remembered seeing what looked like a cave from the top of the hill when Finral teleported them all to the cabin and decided that was probably the best place to go. It was located west of the lake, located behind one of the rolling hills that made up the landscape. Making sure everyone else was distracted, he ran into the cave and began searching for places to hide inside. The cave wasn't super spacious and didn't offer many spots to conceal himself, but with how hidden it was, it shouldn't be an issue. Asta smiled to himself as he realized the others might not be able to find him and that he really had found the ultimate hiding spot. Before Asta knew it, there was a hand covering his mouth.

"Maybe you can tell me exactly what's going on here."


	7. Chapter 7

"Found you, now get your ass down from there." Yami removed the cigarette from his lips and let out a puff of smoke. He was looking up at Luck who had decided to hide in the upper branches of a pine tree.

"Awwww! That was way too fast!" Luck began bouncing down from the branches. Yami had found most of the squadmates in a relatively fast amount of time. Lunch time was drawing near yet there was no sign of Asta anywhere. He was the last one to be found which means he won, they just had to find him and let him know. He was playing fair during the game, but he figured there wouldn't be a problem with picking up on Asta's ki in order to find him. Using this technique he was able to pinpoint Asta's location and began heading in that direction. Yami approached a small cave that he forgot existed but as he got closer, Asta's ki disappeared.

"What's going on here?" Yami grunted to himself. Something seemed a bit off. Why was Asta's ki jumping around? He didn't have the power or technique to pull something like that off. Suddenly it hit him. He had to get back to the cabin as fast as he could. Luckily for him the cave wasn't too far away. In almost no time he had burst through the front door to see all the Black Bulls gathered in the main area near the kitchen, but the atmosphere was tense. Yami could sense Asta's ki yet had to look around the room until he eventually found Asta standing with a man keeping him restrained.

"Well I came to check up on the place and found a couple of rats running around." The egotistical voice spoke loud enough for everyone in the room to hear. Yami recognized the man right away, not to mention the fact that his voice was a dead giveaway as well. The cream colored cloak with blue fur lining the hood.

"What are you doing here Langris." Yami asked while keeping one hand on his sword. "I can't imagine the Vice Captain of the Golden Dawn came down to his favorite squad just to say hello."

"Hah. Of course not. If I had it my way, I wouldn't even be in the same room with you weaklings." Langris scoffed at the inquiry. "Frankly I don't have to explain anything to you Black Bulls."

"Why are you doing this Langris?" Finral asked his half-brother.

"I needed insurance to make sure you guys get out. Now." Langris tightened his grip on the restrained Asta. It wasn't like the newest Black Bull member to be quiet, yet he wouldn't say a word. He almost looked defeated, just staring at the ground.

"We're only going to be here for a while longer. This is my cabin too you know!" Finral began to raise his voice towards Langris, which wasn't something he did very often.

"How dare you talk to me like that." Langris glared at his older brother. "You lost the right to this cabin when you left our house. Don't pretend like you have any right to be here." It was getting obvious that Langris' patience was wearing thin.

"How do you think Vangeance would feel about you interrupting a squad's vacation?" Yami asked while stepping forward towards the Golden Dawn Vice Captain. "Considering your squad's perfect reputation, i'm afraid this wouldn't look too good."

"Are you threatening me?" Langris asked in what almost sounded like disbelief. "The Black Bulls. Threatening the Golden Dawn?" He started to chuckle.

"I don't like repeating myself. Get out or you might not be Vice Captain anymore." Yami began to unsheathe his sword.

"Look Langris." Finral attempted to plead with his brother. "We won't be here much longer. There's clearly a reason you came to the cabin, maybe to use if for something, but we'll be out of here before that happens". Langris glanced around the room at the rest of the Black Bulls, including the captain.

"Tch. If it wasn't for your Captain then this would've ended differently." Langris threw Asta on the floor in front of the rest of the Black Bulls. "Next time I come here you better all be gone." Langris spoke his last words as he opened a portal and disappeared. The squad helped Asta up from the floor, bombarding him with questions about how Langris got a hold of him.

"QUIET DOWN!" Yami yelled over all the other Black Bulls and picked up Asta by his shirt collar. "It may have only been a short period of time but this was most likely draining on him. He needs to rest." The rest of them could only watch as Yami brought Asta back to their room.

"That was weird." Vanessa questioned, finally having recovered from her hangover. "The captain normally just tells us to 'PUSH PAST YOUR LIMITS'. I've never seen him act like this before."

"Well it's best not to think about it too much!" Finral nervously chuckled, attempting to lighten the mood of the group. Other people were beginning to notice Yami's weird behavior as well, meaning it wasn't only his imagination. It wasn't his business to pry into yet he wanted to figure out what was happening.


	8. Chapter 8

Yami put Asta down once they got to their room, letting Asta wander over to the bed and sit on it wearily. Yami closed the door behind him and leaned against it, staring at Asta.

"Quite the day, huh?" Yami asked. The rest of the Black Bulls should still be in the kitchen, so he would be able to figure out exactly what happened with Asta without having to worry about any of the others hearing. Asta looked at Yami and then back down at his hands with his hand hanging. It wasn't like Asta to be so down but after what happened, he couldn't really help it. "So what happened between you and Langris?" Yami pulled a cigarette out from a pack and put it between his lips.

"Well um.." Asta began twiddling his fingers trying to figure out how to piece the situation together.

"Spit it out already!" Yami quickly got impatient with Asta's mumbling.

"I went into this cave to hide for our game." Asta cleared his voice and began explaining what happened. "I found the perfect place but before I knew it he was right behind me. I couldn't even tell her was there." Asta started softly kicking the ground beneath him. It was obvious to Yami that he was feeling beat after this encounter, though he had to continue to press for information in order to understand and assess the situation. It might not be something he wants to talk about but it's for the greater good.

"You couldn't sense his ki or anything?" Yami asked while raising a lighter to his cigarette.

"Ki?" Asta looked up from the ground at Yami, confused. "What's that?"

'I totally forgot he doesn't know anything about that yet, I was planning on teaching him sooner or later.' Yami thought to himself. 'It'd definitely put him on par with all the other mages who have the advantage of sensing magic as well as having it'. "It's nothing." Yami ended up swaying his hand in front of his face to dismiss the question. "What happened after that?"

"Well.. he began questioning me a bunch. Asking how we got here, what we're doing, all that stuff." Asta continued with the story. "I don't understand. He seemed to hate us yet I've never seen him in my life."

"Welcome to the Black Bulls." Yami simply sighed at the rookie's statement. "Langris is the worst of the worst, but don't let it get to you."

"He knew about my sword though… somehow." Asta pondered how the Golden Dawn knew anything about his sword.

"Well you were a big deal at the magic knights exam and he is the Vice Captain, I wouldn't put it past him to have been right next to Vangeance." Yami explained one of the many ways Langris would've known.

"Yeah but…" Asta trailed. "Look." The young Black Bull had stood up and taken his shirt off. Turning around Yami found a mark on his back, some kind of symbol, but had no idea what it could be.

"What the hell is this?!" Yami quickly got up from leaning on the door and walked over to Asta. He put both his hands on Asta's shoulders while investigating the fresh mark. Asta felt shivers go through his body at the touch of Yami's strong and warm hands and immediately got red in the face, hoping Yami didn't notice.

"I-It happened after Langris questioned me about everything. It took awhile for him to do and I wasn't able to move while he did it." Asta got more quiet as he turned back around and sat on the bed. Suddenly his weariness turned to anger as he punched the mattress beneath him. "I couldn't do anything! I got captured and became dead weight, someone for you guys to rescue." Asta's emotions were almost palpable in the air. "On top of that, I don't even know what this stupid mark is."

"Hey." Yami put his hand on Asta's head and looked him directly in the eyes. "The Black Bulls don't take in dead weight, but we took you in. What does that tell you?"

"That you made a mistake." Asta crossed his arms and broke eye contact. The next thing Asta felt was a fist hit his head as punishment for his answer. "Ow!" Asta let out a surprised yell.

"Wrong answer." Yami corrected him, but in an unusually calm voice. Suddenly Yami used the hand that was on Asta's head to pull him into an embrace. "You're one of the Black Bulls. You're an important member of our team whether you like it or not, got it?" Yami spoke close to Asta's ear, his stubble rubbing against Asta's hair and forehead. Asta, being taken in an embrace by surprise, had both his hands on Yami's chest. He could feel the captain's well defined chest as well as his abs against his own chest. Before he knew it his face was getting red again and he attempted to hide it by putting his forehead into Yami's chest, causing the captain to chuckle. Asta felt Yami use his other free hand to take the cigarette out of his mouth and blow the smoke out. After flicking the cigarette into the ashtray with his free hand, Yami put his hand under Asta's chin, lifting his face in order to make eye contact. This action revealed how red Asta's face was making him only more embarrassed. "Y'know" Yami smiled, "I've been waiting to do this" He whispered as he began leaning in towards the new recruit. Before Yami was able to make contact with Asta's lips, a knock came at the door.

"Guys! Charmy is done with lunch! Get it while it's hot!" Finral's voice was heard shouting through their door. Yami looked at the door and then back at Asta, letting him go.

"Guess we better get some grub" Yami patted his stomach.

"Y-yeah!" Asta agreed, still flustered from everything that just happened. How was he supposed to act normal in front of his squadmates now?


	9. Chapter 9

The two walked out to the kitchen area to find everyone gathered around eating some pasta Charmy had cooked up.

"Go ahead and eat everybody! There's more than enough to go around!" Charmy screamed over the sound of her cotton sheep cooking in the kitchen.

"Hey there they are!" Magna exclaimed as the two walked out of their room.

"You're not gonna rest at all?" Vanessa questioned Asta who still looked exhausted.

"Oh well actually-" Asta began to explain but was cut off by Charmy

"He couldn't help but eat some of my delicious food! I can't blame him! Eat!" Charmy shoved a plate in front of two empty seats, assigning them to Yami and Asta. The two sat down in their spots and began eating the food Charmy had prepared for them. Asta's mind began to race as he ate his food, not able to help but recap everything that had just happened that day.

"Hey." Yami snapped Asta out of his thoughts. "Eat your goddamn food before it gets cold." Yami grunted just low enough for Asta to hear. Was this Yami's way of showing he cared? Or was he just trying to make sure his squadmates were strong and healthy. Asta shook his head and figured it wasn't worth thinking about right now as he dug into his food.

"Thank you for the food!" Asta yelled as he gulped down the last of his lunch. He stood up from his seat, still a little lightheaded, and brought the dish to the sink. He was about to wash it before Magna called out from the table.

"Don't worry about washing your dish, Luck and I are on dish duty for today!"

"WIth Magna's fire and my speed we'll be the fastest washers here!" Luck exclaimed somehow finding the bright side to washing dishes.

"Thanks guys." Asta smiled through his tiredness as he headed back towards his room. It was time for a nap.

-B-L-A-C-K-C-L-O-V-E-R-

Asta awoke in his room and rubbed his eyes. Looking outside the window, he could see all the squadmates spending time down at the beach together, and by how the sun was positioned in the sky he could tell it was about 3 in the afternoon. He took a long moment to stretch before getting out of bed and heading down to the beach

"Hey everyone!" Asta waved as he ran towards the others.

"Well would you look who's finally awake" Vanessa chuckled while holding a beach ball in her hands. It looks as if he had just interrupted a heated game of pass between Vanessa, Noelle and Finral.

"Hey Captain! Since Asta's awake, does that mean we can go now?" Finral shouted to a distant part of the beach.

"What?!" Yami's voice could barely be heard yelling back. Finral sighed and opened a portal to Yami and stuck his head through it to repeat his question. "Yeah lets do it!" Yami exclaimed after understanding Finral's proposal.

"Did you all have something planned for after I woke up?" Asta was a bit confused about what was going on.

"Well there are some good hiking trails around here and I know we don't have a lot of time left here, so I figured now would be the best time to go." Finral smiled, clearly proud of the idea he thought of.

"I'm not much of a hiker but since we never get to do this kinda stuff I figured i'd give it a shot." Vanessa chimed in.

"Oh this will be so fun!" Charmy flew over on her cotton cloud.

"Y'know you can't ride around on that thing the whole time." Magna yelled from where the beach was closer to the water.

"I think Marie would love the view of the lake as we hike." Gauche somehow managed to find a way to bring Marie into the hiking idea.

"Yeah.. what's a hike?" Noelle asked the group.

"Royaltyyy!" Asta cries out, though the rest of the group just seems to ignore the question, assuming she'll find out sooner or later.

"I know there's a good trail just along the ridges of the hill" Finral pointed to some rolling hills that were located on the right side of the lake. "I used to hike them with my family all the time, it's super fun."

"Well let's get a move on!" Yami yelled as he walked towards the group. He picked up Finral by his head and placed him in front. "And you're leading"

"Ow ow ow ow." Finral muttered as he was being repositioned by Yami. "You could've just asked me to move y'know." He grunted while leading the way on the trail. Finral was at the front with Vanessa, Noelle, Charmy, Magna and Luck behind him. Gordon was placed behind Luck followed by Gauche and Grey, leaving Asta and Yami at the very back.

"I can't even see anything past Grey! Why did you put us back here?" Asta questioned the captain.

"I figured we could talk a bit." Yami explained. "Grey won't even listen and Gauche talking to Marie is a good sound barrier for us." Asta looked back at Yami surprised by how thoroughly he had planned this out. "Hey!" Yami quietly yelled in his usual rough voice. "Don't read too deep into this okay?! It's not like I planned this out." Yami rubbed the back of his head, embarrassed. Asta could tell he was lying but he didn't mind, he thought it was cute to see this side of the captain, a side no one else got to see. Asta wouldn't have realized it before but Grey was the perfect sound barrier. He could only make out the conversations of Magna telling Charmy to get off her cotton cloud, or Luck challenging everyone to a race, when he really strained his hearing. Though one thing remained unclear to him. What did Yami want to talk about?


	10. Chapter 10

Asta stared at Yami while the captain cleared his throat. The captain wasn't one to ever look or seem nervous but Asta picked up that he was definitely feeling some kind of pressure.

"About what happened earlier today.. I didn't mean to-" Yami began to apologize but Asta cut him short.

"Captain it's okay. Really. You helped me feel better when I wasn't myself." Asta smiled at Yami. "And now I'm feeling back into tip top shape! Oh yeah!" Asta yelled loud enough for everyone to hear but no one paid any attention. Yami just laughed and gave Asta a strong pat on the back.

"You got a lot of energy from your nap huh?" Yami smiled. It was nice seeing Asta back to his old self, bright and cheerful, and not to forget loud. "So.. you didn't mind?" Yami avoided eye contact while alluding to what happened after he brought Asta to his room. Asta knew Yami wasn't one to get flustered so it must have something to do with Yami being Squad Captain and him being their newest rookie. If news of Yami making unwanted advances on new recruits got out, that could spell the end for the Black Bulls as a squad.

"Of course I don't mind!" Asta persuaded his captain. "I'm not really sure what to do since I've never been in a situation like this before.. but I know one thing and it's that I really like you Captain Yami." He let out a nervous smile. He had never admitted feelings to anyone before other than Sister Lily. Though he did that every day and he had forgotten how scary it was confessing for the first time. This statement brought Yami's eyes back into contact with Asta's.

"Y'know I really like a man who knows how to take care of himself." Yami smiled at Asta. "And I know you know how to do that." Asta laughed while rubbing the back of his head, his face getting obviously red from the dark mage's compliment. Suddenly Asta crashed into the back of Grey who had stopped promptly. "Ow.." Asta grunted to himself.

"Chuuuuuu" Grey left out their usual puff of smoke, not even seeming to realize Asta had just crashed into them. Asta and Yami had been blindly following the rest of the group, unsure of where they were, yet it seemed they had finally reached the end of the hike as they overlooked a great view of the lake.

"Here we are!" Finral moved his arm as if to give the lake an introduction. "Isn't it gorgeous from up here? I'd say this was a great idea from yours truly."

"Wow the view is so beautiful from up here!" Vanessa exclaimed. She proceeded to then try and take a bottle of booze out of her bag.

"Woah no none of that up here." Finral stopped Vanessa before she could bring the bottle to her lips.

"And why not?" She questioned him.

"If you get wasted now how do you supposed we'll get back?" He crossed his arms waiting for the witch's response.

"You ARE a spacial mage, right?" Vanessa poked at her attacker. "Drink up while you can!" She put a bottle in Finral's hand and clinked her bottle with his before downing it.

"Guess I'm teleporting everyone back then." Finral gave up on stopping Vanessa. He went over to Yami and gave him the bottle he had received from Vanessa. "Enjoy it since I'm warping everyone back when we're ready to go." Finral didn't sound too thrilled about that fact yet he knew there was no point in arguing with this group.

"Alright! Let's get this party started!" Yami shouted to his squad. He received many enthusiastic cheers as the group prepared for a fun afternoon. Finral used his portals to bring some food from the cabin so everyone wouldn't get hungry and Charmy did the honors of cooking it, creating a huge feast for everyone. "Here, try some." Yami lifted a glass to Asta.

"Im alrigh-"

"I wasn't asking." Yami scowled at him.

"Right.." Asta grabbed the cup. His first sip of alcohol was while he was hanging with his friends and there was nowhere else he'd rather do it with. Or no one else he'd rather give it to him. Asta gave a glance to Yami who was smiling at him while waiting for his reaction expectantly. Asta downed the cup and immediately started coughing from the intense flavor and burning sensation in his throat.

"Haha! Here take this." Yami let out a loud, roaring laugh. He handed Asta a water bottle which he downed quickly in order to get the bad flavor out of his mouth.

"That was awful! And you just down that stuff?" Asta stared at Yami in surprise. All Asta got in response was a shrug as Yami took another swig from his cup. The sun began setting as all the Black Bulls sat around a fire lit by Magna, eating the food recently finished by Charmy. Everything around them was tinted pink including the lake which was becoming a more gorgeous view by the second. Before long Vanessa was unable to stand and Luck was beginning to pick fights which meant it was time to pack up the trip they had planned for the day.

"Alright everyone let's go, come on." Finral corralled everyone into the portal he had opened up. "Single file please." He smiled to himself at his own humor. He had gotten everyone through except for Yami, Asta, Magna and Luck before he decided he wasn't going to wait for them any longer. "I'll keep the portal open, you guys just come back within the next 3 minutes or it'll close and then you'll really be on your own." Finral waved as he said his final words and stepped through his portal.

"Let's go Magna!" Luck shouted while bouncing around before going through the portal Not much longer after a fireball went flying in after him.

"Get back here you little psycho!" Magna ran in through the portal after him, fire bat in hand. Asta began heading towards the portal but was stopped by Yami grabbing his hand.

"W-wait just a moment." Yami slurred his words a little bit. It was obvious he had a little too much to drink. Did he need help getting to the portal?

"What's wrong?" Asta turned around to face the muscular outline of Yami against the pink sky.

"I just thought.. now would be the… perfect time to.." Yami began to lean in closer and closer to Asta until finally their lips reached each other. Asta was really kissing their captain and it was everything he imagined it would be. He closed his eyes and began kissing Yami back, who in turn took this as a sign to get more aggressive. He felt Yami's tongue pressing on his lips asking for entrance which Asta readily agreed to. Yami grabbed Asta's back, pulling him in closer to get better access, his beard hair rubbing against Asta's own face as his mouth was being explored by his captain's tongue. He could clearly taste the alcohol that Yami had been drinking earlier tonight, though it didn't bother him in the slightest, Asta never wanted this moment to end. Sadly, Finral's portal began making weird noises, signaling that it was time for them to leave or they would be stuck at the end of the trail. Asta broke away from the make out session and stared into Yami's grey eyes, smiling while he remained in Yami's embrace.

"As great as that was, we're going to be stuck on this mountain if we don't get going." Asta pointed out how little time was left to get back to the cabin.

"Pft. So what?" Yami shrugged. "We can take it." He was clearly tipsy and feeling a bit too overconfident for the condition he was in.

"Okay right. Come on." Asta grabbed his hand and dragged Yami through the portal. As soon as they walked through they realized they were already in their room. 'Huh, Finral must've made it so the portals took everyone to their own rooms, that's pretty neat.'

"Way to go Finral!" Yami yelled hoping Finral would hear his appraisal.

"Alright Yami you sit down and do what you need to do while I get ready for bed." Asta knew if he talked like this to Yami normally then he would get a beating, though right now it was for the greater good. Asta closed the door to the bathroom and began changing and brushing his teeth. All the while he kept hearing noises coming from their room until his curiosity got the best of him and he opened the bathroom door. "What are you doing out here?"

"Well." Yami was laying down on not only his bed, but also Asta's bed that he had pushed together with his. "I figured you'd be scared after what happened today and that I could offer you some company and protection." Yami finished his proposal with a smirk. Just the look of Yami smirking on the bed, waiting for Asta's company was enough to make his heart beat faster.

"I- Yeah that could definitely work i just- I think you need to get ready for bed." Asta kept stuttering over his own words with how flustered he was by Yami's sudden proposal. Yami walked past Asta into the bathroom with his smirk remaining on his face. Asta moved over to the bed and laid down while waiting for Yami to finish up in the restroom. Eventually the Black Bulls captain opened the door from the bathroom to reveal him only wearing his black pajama pants with the Black Bulls insignia on it. He quickly got under the covers and signaled Asta to get under his arm. As soon as he did he was pulled into Yami's chest, catching a whiff of his masculine musky scent that he loved. Asta began to get more comfortable as he draped his left arm across Yami's impressive six pack. Before long the two of them had fallen asleep due to the long day they had finally finished.

-B-L-A-C-K-C-L-O-V-E-R-

Asta awoke to Yami's hand in his face as well as Yami's leg intermingled with his. He sat up, moving some hair out of his eyes. Asta turned and looked at Yami who had some drool falling out his mouth, making him smile. He shook Yami a little bit to wake him up.

"Huh? What?!" Yami awoke automatically on high alert until he realized where he was. He looked over at Asta with groggy eyes. "Were you the one who woke me up?" Before Asta was able to give an answer, Finral began knocking at their door.

"Hey guys! It's time to go!" Finral shouted at the other side of the door. Asta was a little confused at first but then realized it must be because of what happened with Langris the other day. It sadly cut their vacation short. Yami and Asta quickly packed up their belongings and met up with the rest of the squad by the front door. It was sad that their vacation couldn't have been as long as it should've and he was sure the rest of them felt the same way, but there was nothing that could be done. It was better to head out and go back to the Black Bulls base instead of possibly dealing with Langris again, or the Golden Dawn for that matter. Finral opened a portal for everyone for the last time this trip, leaving himself as the last one to go in. Before they knew it they were back in the Black Bulls hideout, offering all the squadmates a nice sense of home and security. He'd be lying if he said it wasn't nice to be back, but it sucks that everything had to spiral the way it did. Though now he had time to focus on his training, his friends, and possibly his new relationship. Asta was ready for what the future had in store and has been preparing himself all his life to take it on headfirst. Though no one could predict what was coming next.


End file.
